Pokémon: Shadows of the Past
by Bigbrownie
Summary: Read and Review Kurisu and Ani are two friends who have met for the first time and are travelling through the Hoenn region. Little do they know that something will come from the past of one of the heroes that will change their lives...Enjoy their epic adventure filled with Action, Humour and Love.
1. Chapter 1: A Journey's Beginning

**Pokémon: Shadows of the Past Episode 1**

In a special world, people and special creatures, called Pokémon, live together in joyful harmony. Some people work together to provide happiness and safety, other people work to become the strongest trainers around.

Sadly not everyone adjusts themselves to a life of happiness and use Pokémon for their selfish and evil desires. This is a tale of 2 young travellers who starts their journey to become the strongest trainers in the region but will get them involved in an adventure that will change their lives forever for better and for worst.

It was a beautiful day in Littleroot Town. The sun was shining, the Pidgeys were singing, and everyone in town was enjoying the nice warm sunshine. The one who enjoyed it the most was Ani, who was looking out the window of her bedroom and smiling at the wonderful scenery. She was excited; since today was the day she obtained her first Pokémon and started her journey.

"It's so beautiful out here," she said to herself before quickly getting dressed. "I can't wait!"

Ani's dad, Richard, was busy reading through the morning paper at the kitchen table. He had his eye on a news story about how trainers were gathering all over the place, ready to obtain their starter Pokémon to begin their journey, his daughter going to be one of those few. His attention shifted to upstairs, wondering where his daughter was. "Ani! Your breakfast is getting cold!" He shouted, hoping the Ani had heard him

Just as Ani was finishing up getting ready, she heard her dad call for her.

"Okay dad! I'm coming!" With that, she took one quick glance in the mirror, posed a little, then once she approved of how she looked, the excited trainer-to-be rushed down the stairs and into the kitchen. "Morning dad!" she greeted upon arrival. Richard then put his eyes off the paper and turned to see Ani in her clothes. "Well look at you." He gave a little smile as he took a sip from his cup of coffee. "I think I can say that I have the cutest daughter in the world." Richard gave a playful chuckle.

"Daaad!" Ani whined playfully before laughing a bit. "Knock it off~!" Richard just began to chuckle, trying to keep his coffee mug still as his body shook with laughter.

"Sorry dear. Anyway, are you all set for your journey?" Ani's dad said, as he calmed himself down from the slight bit of fun they had. "After all, you'll be by yourself once you get your first Pokémon you know?"

"But I wouldn't be by myself if I have a Pokémon," said Ani as she sat down at the table to eat her breakfast. "I'll be fine dad." She then smiled reassuringly.

Richard just smiled "Seems you passed the first rule of being a Pokémon trainer Ani. Your Pokémon will always have your back no matter what happens. The good or the bad." His voice was sounding calmer then what he sounded like last night. His eyes then glanced at the clock. "Well, looks like there's an hour to go before your appointment with Professor Birch...You decided on your Partner yet?" He said, curious as to what her daughter would be travelling with.

Ani shook her head as he continued to eat her breakfast "I'm going to choose when I get there. After all, its one thing to know which Pokémon I want, but I want to feel in my heart which one I want aswell…"

"I See, well, you better get your shoes and make your way there. After all, you won't be the only one starting today you know" He replied quickly to his own words as he pulled out the letter that arrived early that morning "Supposedly; another trainer is starting at the same time as you." He placed the letter just to the left of the plate in front of Ani

Ani seemed to take interest as she picked up the letter. "Who is it?" she asked, opening the letter to see what it read.

"He's a trainer from Johto, his name is Kurisu." Richard replied as he stood up from his chair, pointing at the paragraph for Ani to read.

Ani looked at the paragraph her dad pointed to and began reading what it said. The paragraph was a good bit down the page:

'You will also be signing up at the same time as a boy by the name of Kurisu. He hails from Goldenrod City in Johto and is making his first journey in Hoenn. You both are starting as new, so it will be a chance to get to know each other and explore a bit of knowledge about Pokémon from around the world..." The letter went on to talk abit about the way the meeting and choosing would work.

As she read the note, Ani smiled a bit, feeling really giddy now. "Now I really can't wait!" she said once she finished the letter and quickly finished her breakfast.

Ani's dad chuckled as he watched Ani swallow her food quickly "Take it easy Ani. You still have some time left." He obviously wanted Ani to take things easy, but he was worried about her daughter going off on the journey.

"I know," said Ani as she finished up and got up to put her dishes away. She got up so quickly it almost took her dad by surprise. "But I'm so excited! I can't help it..!"

"It's understandable. I'll finish the dishes Ani. You...get yourself off to the lab" He said as he got up to put his dishes away. "Just make sure you have everything"

Ani turned to her dad and gave a little smile. "Don't worry," said Ani as she helped up her bag. "I did." With that said she put on her shoes and headed out the door. "Love you dad! See ya!"

"Love you too Ani..." His voice then quietened as he gave a little sigh "She's all grown up...just like her mother." Richard walked over to the fireplace and picked up the photo frame. It contained a photo of Ani and Richard, with a women standing next to him. "Sarah...watch over her."

Ani smiled as she made her way over to the lab, getting more and more excited with each step she took. 'I wonder what I should get?" she thought to herself. 'Ohhh I dunno! This is so exciting!'

Meanwhile at the lab, Professor Birch was waiting outside the front door, dressed in his lab gear. He looked at his watch, the hands had just hit midday on his wristwatch, and then the sound of the town's bell rang to signify midday

"Looks like its time. Once she gets here we can begin..." He murmured to himself as he looked out towards the entrance to his lab.

Ani kept running until the lab was in her sight. She noticed Professor Birch out in front and waved to him. "Professor!" she called out. "Hey! I'm here!"

Birch just looked up suddenly as he heard the girl's voice "Ah! Ani! You're right on time!" He waved back as he watched Ani run towards him as fast as her legs could go.

Ani soon slowed to a stop once she arrived, hunching over with her hands on her knees as she tried to catch her breath. "I... I came... as soon... as I c... could..!" she panted.

Birch just chuckled and gave her a pat on the back. "It's alright. Though Kurisu is already inside, he's been here since last night actually. He's inside playing with the Pokémon."

Ani perked up at those words. "Awesome!" she exclaimed before making her way inside. "What's he like?"

Birch just smiled as he walked by the side. "Well let us go on round the back and see for yourself." He said as he walked towards the back of the large building towards the sound of laughing. Eventually they arrived at the entrance to the large field behind the place. "He's just there." He pointed towards a young lad, who was sitting on the ground with 3 Pokémon around him.

Ani looked towards the boy playing with the Pokémon, seeming to be in awe at first. But then she smiled brightly and slowly went inside.

"Hey there!" she greeted cheerfully. The young boy turned suddenly around towards Ani. He was taken by surprised and fell backwards. He quickly sat up and looked up at Ani

"H-Hey! Y-You startled me there!" He quickly said, his voice showed signs that he was nervous. His voice then tuned down as he realised he was getting stressed out. "Y-You must be...?"

Ani laughed a bit, and then smiled gently as she held up her hand for him to shake. "My name is Ani," she said. "Sorry for startling you. I'm just excited to meet someone new!"

The boy just looked up at the girl looking down at him, and then noticed the hand offered to him. After blinking a few times he eventually got his breath back and began to speak. "A-Ani...right..." he quietly said as he took Ani's hand and stood up. "I'm…Kurisu. It's a pleasure to meet you." His voice soon recovered from the shock as he began to speak in his normal tone again "I guess I was too distracted with playing with the Pokémon" His attention shifted to the Grass type Pokémon that was sitting by his leg.

Ani glanced over at the Pokémon and smiled brightly at them. "Are these the starters?" she asked. Birch walked over to the pair of kids as Ani's question was asked.

"They are indeed." He replied, standing in a pose that made him look like a school teacher. "These are the 3 Pokémon that trainers in Hoenn can start with; the 3rd trainer who's starting with you will be running late as his ferry is running behind so you 2 get to choose first." He said as he bent down to the eye level of the 3 Pokémon. "Kurisu, why don't you show Ani here who they are?"

Kurisu nodded slowly, he knew he was being tested and then bent down too and looked up at Ani. "Well, This Pokémon here is Treecko, he is a grass type." The Treecko stood up from the ground and gave a little salute towards Ani.

Ani resisted the urge to glomp Treecko as she looked over at the Pokémon again. She looked over at the Treecko first. "Hmmm..." she pondered as she looked at it. "It looks pretty cool."

Kurisu then turned his attention towards the fire type "This here is Torchic, the fire type" The Torchic jumped up and down with excitement and began to run around Ani's legs.

Ani giggled at the Torchic's enthusiasm. "So cute~!" she exclaimed. Birch then picked up Torchic in his hands and held it in a little embrace

"Torchic is one of my favourite Pokémon. It reminds me of how passionate a trainer can be with its fiery personality" Birch closed his eyes and began to daydream of his days handing out Torchic in the past. Just then, the final Pokémon started to nibble on Kurisu's trouser leg.

Ani glanced over at the last Pokémon. "I think it likes you Kurisu," she stated with a smile. Kurisu turned around and picked up the little water Pokémon

"And this little feller is Mudkip, the water Pokémon" The Mudkip just smiled and gave out a little "kip"

Ani just held back her joy as best she could "Aww~!" said Ani as she looked at the water-type. "It's so cute~!

The Professor then got up and gave Mudkip a gentle rub on its head. "Mudkip hasn't left Kurisu's side since he got here. It's like it was attached to him".

Kurisu just blushed a little "Well...all I did was just give it a hug and it hasn't left me since." He smiles gently as he looked down at Mudkip, who in return gave a smile back.

Ani giggled a bit at that. "I guess this means you've chosen your Pokémon, huh?" she said before turning to the Treecko and Torchic. "But which one should I choose?"

"Well do you know anything about Treecko or Torchic?" Professor Birch was curious as to how much research or knowledge Ani had on the Pokémon of Hoenn.

"Hmm..." Ani thought about it, trying to remember what the books said about them. "... Well, Treecko is a grass-type. They also climb trees and I believe most of their strength comes from their tail or something like that... Torchic is a fire-type. They get excited pretty easily but they're also not to be underestimated despite being adorable."

"Impressive." The Professor smiled as he heard her words. "Now Kurisu, do you know what they evolve into to?" Kurisu looked up suddenly, as his eyes still were transfixed on Mudkip at the time

"M-Me...Um...Well..." Kurisu started to panic a little, but after a small deep breath he regained his composure and began to speak. "Treecko evolves into Grovyle and then into a Sceptile...which are all standard Grass types. Meanwhile, Torchic evolves into a Combusken and then into a Blaziken, which, apart from Torchic, are both Fire and Fighting types...right?"

"I thought they could learn flying type moves!" said Ani as she looked over at Torchic. "I mean, they're bird Pokémon, right?"

Birch then interrupted at that moment by putting up his finger. "True. Well they can, but Torchic is the only one who can learn a move like that and that's Peck, but they can learn aerial ace aswell. Besides that, the mainly focus on fire and fighting moves when they evolve"

Ani seemed intrigued by this. "Hmmm..." she pondered. "Interesting." She then glanced at the Pokémon again. "I think..." She glanced over at the Treecko, then at the Torchic. "I think I'll piiiiick..." Ani went over to and picked up the Torchic. "…This one!"

Torchic gave a happy yell as it was held in Ani's arms. Treecko on the other hand bowed its head a little. Kurisu noticed this and walked over, patting its back "I'm sorry Treecko, But hey, at least when your trainer gets here, you'll have someone to go with" The Treecko smiled a little bit but it obviously was upset.

Ani glanced over at the Treecko, feeling bad now. "I'm sorry..." she said."I wish I could take you too but I can only take one starter…But you'll probably go on all sorts of cool adventures with your new trainer!"

Birch then gave a little smirk towards the pair of trainers. "Then it's settled, Kurisu, you take good care of Mudkip and Ani, you take care of Torchic. You two are about to embark on the journey of a lifetime"

Ani and Kurisu both then turned to Birch and nodded in response. "We'll take care of them! Don't worry about us!" They said in joint unison.

Birch then turned around and walked towards the lab again "Everyone, follow me. We need to register you and your Pokémon. Plus we need to give you a little something before you go." Kurisu looked at Ani and gave a little smile. "Shall we?" he then began to run after Birch. Ani nodded. "Sure!" she said as she followed after them.

Inside the lab, they arrived at a large room filled with machines and computers galore Birch began to type up something on the computer whilst Kurisu sat on the nearby table with Mudkip sitting in front of him on the table. His attention then shifted to Ani. "So Ani...is this your first journey too then?" "Yep!" said Ani as she began playing with her Torchic. "I'm really excited about it!" Kurisu chuckled a little "That makes two of us." He said as he gently stroked Mudkip's head. But then something occurred

Just then, he felt something weird within him, his heart began to beat a little bit as his eyes glanced at Ani. Ani glanced over at Kurisu for a moment, wondering what he was thinking about. "Something wrong?" she asked. "Huh? Oh...well...it's just...your outfit it's...cute" He smiled gently at her as his face gently blushed a little. Ani giggled a bit. "You think so?" she asked, blushing a bit as well. "You look pretty good yourself!"

Kurisu's face blushed a little more "Well...thanks." He turned his head back and smiled. Just then his heart began to beat a little more 'My heart...it's...' He thought to himself, as he felt his heart beat a little. Ani smirked a bit as she turned back to her Torchic, glancing at Kurisu every now and then. 'He's... kind of cute...' she thought, blushing a bit herself. '…This is turning out to be a very good day!'

Professor Birch looked over his computer and looked at the pair of trainers; he gave a little smile as he stood up out of his chair "There...finished!" He gave a huge sigh as he pulled out two red devices from the computer and began to walk towards the pair. "Here you go; these are Pokédex's, one for each of you." He then put them out, holding one in each of his hands and in front of Kurisu and Ani.

Kurisu took one of the Pokédex's from Birch's hand and looked it. "So...this is a Pokédex...it's amazing." Kurisu said quietly, as he stood then in awe. He had never seen one before in his life, so holding one made him feel quite honoured. Ani held hers; nearly squealing in excitement as she opened it and began playing around with it to see how it worked.

"With that Pokédex, you'll be able to check information on any Pokémon you find along the way." Professor Birch explained as he watched the pair mess with their new devices. "…Their habitats, their style of battling and much more information."

"This is so cool!" Ani exclaimed as she finished up. "Thanks Professor!" "Yeah! Thank you so much Professor Birch!" Kurisu happily joined in as he bowed towards the Professor. "It's not a problem at all, though if you're going to begin your journey then you'll need a destination to start with." Professor Birch replied as he took out his map of the Hoenn region from the chest of drawers nearby. Ani looked over at the map, trying to see where they should start. "Maybe the next town?" she asked.

"Sounds like a plan. Let's see..." Kurisu looked at the map with eagle eyes. The map was off the entire region of Hoenn. It displayed every city, town and major landmark that was around. Eventually they found where New Bark town was and then followed the route with a finger to the next stop. "The next town is..." He was never good at reading maps, and was having trouble trying to find their first destination. "Oldale Town!" Ani exclaimed as she saw the next town on the map. "…Right Professor?"

Birch nodded his head. "That's the closest town, but if you want to take on the gym challenge, then Oldale doesn't have a gym." Professor Birch replied as he then pointed to the next city "This City has a gym...its called Petalburg City."

"Petalburg...the beginning of the journey..." Kurisu murmured to himself, he was lost in thought that the adventure was just minutes away. His attention soon shifted when he heard Ani shout next to him. "Then what are we waiting for?" Ani said as she grabbed the map, getting even more excited. "Let's go take on the Gym!"

The professor chuckled as he watched how quickly the map was grabbed. "That's the spirit." He replied back with just as much energy as Ani. "Though why don't you both travel together? After all, Kurisu, you don't know this region do you?" Kurisu just blushed a little as he looked over at Ani "Well...True...I wouldn't mind travelling with a companion...that is if Ani wants me to?" He replied softly to the proposal. Within his heart he was hoping for her to say 'Yes'. Ani giggled at that. "Of course!" she replied happily. "The more the merrier! Right Torchic?" She turned to her Pokémon at that question. The Torchic nodded in delight, saying, "Torchic!" in the happiest way possible.

Kurisu smiled as he blushed a little. "Thanks Ani...Lets achieve our dream together!" He nodded his head as he suddenly got a boost in energy. "Well then, I just have one final gift for you..." Professor birch placed his hands in his pockets and pulled out 6 Pokéballs in each hand. "Here you are Torchic and Mudkip's Pokéball and 5 more Pokéballs for you to catch more for your team". Kurisu smiled again as he happily accepted the gift.

Ani smiled as she accepted the Pokéballs as well. "Thanks again Professor!" she said before using the Pokéball to return Torchic to. "We'll make the best team ever!"

Kurisu turned towards Mudkip and used its Pokéball to return it back inside. "Yeah! And nothing can stop us!" He smiled as he placed the Pokéballs in his bag. "Well then, let's go!" Kurisu said as he turned towards the Professor "Thank you for everything Professor Birch. We'll keep in touch." And with that, Kurisu turned and began to walk towards the entrance of the lab to leave. "Yeah! Thanks a ton Professor!" Ani said. She then gave Birch a big hug, and then ran off toward Kurisu. "We'll call when we reach Oldale!"

"Take care of yourselves you two!" Birch yelled to them as they both disappeared out the door. "Now...I wonder where the other trainer is...Best get Treecko ready for him." Birch said to himself, as he began to walk towards the backyard to grab Treecko. He was unaware that Treecko had moved to the entrance of the lab and was watching from the roof, his gaze glared at Kurisu and Ani as they left the building.

Kurisu stood at the gate entrance to the lab and looked out towards the town. "Well…this is it..." Kurisu thought to himself. It was then that he started to shake a little "Man...I'm nervous."

Ani laughed as she ran outside and twirled around. "Isn't this exciting?" she asked. "We're now Pokémon trainers!" Kurisu looked up when Ani spoke "Huh? Oh! Yeah!" He replied quickly, trying to cover up his nerves. Ani was unaware of Kurisu's nerves as she expressed how happy she was on what was about to happen. Just then a thought came to Ani's mind. "I need to tell my dad the good news!" Ani exclaimed as she ran towards her house. "C'mon! I want to introduce you to him too!"

"Uh...Wait for me!" Kurisu yelled as he began to run after Ani. He eventually caught up with Ani and was running by the side of her, with a smile on his face.

Meanwhile at Ani's house, Ani's dad was buys watering the plants out in the front garden. "There...perfect! It's going to be hard looking after the place with Ani going off on her journey." He said to himself, as he stared at the roses he had just finished watering with his wailmer pail.

Ani ran and ran until she saw her dad out front; she smiled and waved at him. "Hey dad!" she called out. "I got my first Pokémon!" Richard looked up and saw his daughter waving at him "Ani! That's great news!" He called out back in reply as he put down the watering can and stepped out onto the path to meet his daughter. His eyes then turned to the young boy next to her. "I take it this is one of the 2 trainers starting aswell?"

Ani nodded as she ran up and hugged her father. "Yeah!" she said happily. "He also got his first Pokémon! Want to see them dad?" Richard just nodded as he gave a smile towards them. "Here we go! Mudkip, I choose you!" Kurisu shouted as he threw his Pokéball in the air, Then Mudkip appeared on the ground in front of him.

At that very moment, Ani also threw her Pokéball in the air at the same time at Kurisu "Torchic, I choose you!" She shouted and with that, Torchic appeared standing next to Mudkip.

Richard looked at the pair of Pokémon and bent down to them. His eyes carefully scanning the two, he kept his eyes on them as he spoke. "Hmm…A Torchic and a Mudkip...Interesting choices. What made you choose them?" Richard stroked the Torchic just on the top of its head.

"The Torchic was cute!" Ani replied. "And it will evolve into a fighter one day!" She smiled brightly at the end of her sentence.

"Sounds like a good reason. And who is this guy then?" Richard looked up as he questioned who Kurisu was exactly.

"Im Kurisu, I'm going to be travelling with your daughter." Kurisu said as he bent down to stroke Mudkip. All Mudkip did was just jump and down with excitement.

Ani nodded in agreement. "We're going to be travel buddies!" she said in excitement. Torchic squealed in delightful agreement, hopping up and down as well.

Richard looked over Kurisu with a concerned look. "And you...Kurisu...Will you take care of my little girl?" Kurisu gulped nervously as he saw the glare coming from Ani's dad.

"W-Well...I...I can do my best..." The nerves showed as Kurisu spoke. Richard's glare was as strong as if it was a dagger going right through his body.

"Daaaaad!" Ani whined. "Stop scaring him! He's already nervous about this!"

"Well I don't trust him...I mean he's being a scared little kid. I forbid this!" Richard just crossed his arms "I bet he couldn't defend anything even if it was from a simple Magikarp!" Kurisu bowed his head as he was trying to hide his fears right now. If her dad wasn't seeing the strength in him then how could he see it himself?

"Hey!" Ani shouted in disapproval. "He's just starting out! Like me! Leave him alone!" Richard Just gave a loud 'Humph' as he looked over.

"Well...you have some point but I'd rather my daughter travel with someone that they can depend on." His voice showed signs he was concerned for his daughter's wellbeing. Ani could tell just without looking how distraught Kurisu must have been feeling. She then gave a deep breath and looked at her father.

"Don't worry!" said Ani as she smiled reassuringly. "We'll be fine." She then turned to Kurisu. "Right Kurisu?"

Kurisu looked at Ani, he could how determined she was for him to travel with her. He then turned his head towards the dad again and nodded his head "Right...Listen, I know your worried about your daughter and I understand. But...if she can trust me right now then, and I mean this as no disrespect, surely you can too."

Ani nodded in agreement. "Yeah!" she said. "C'mon dad, please?"

Ani's dad just closed his eyes and crossed his arms. After a couple of seconds, he gave a gentle sigh and opened his eyes. "Well...just as long as no harm comes to my daughter then I guess it's alright." He then looked up, still with his arms crossed but at that moment he picked up his voice again "But if I find out that a single hair has come off my daughters head..." He gave Kurisu a cold stare just as strong as before.

All Kurisu did at that point was nod repeatedly and nervously. "Y-Yes sir!"

"Quit worrying so much dad!" said Ani as she recalled her Torchic back in its Pokéball. "We'll be on our way now. I'll call you when we get to Oldale, okay?" With that, she waved her good-bye and headed off towards the way out of town. "C'mon Kurisu! Let's go!"

"Uh...Right! Coming!" He quickly recalled Mudkip into its Pokéball, and then bowed towards Ani's dad as he ran off after Ani. Ani's dad just gave a sigh as he watched them run off together

"Looks like she won't need much help...Just be careful." He quietly said to himself as he made his back inside the house.

Ani kept running until she reached the way out of Little Root Town, now even more excited than ever before. Kurisu managed to catch up to Ani after a bit of running "Ready then Ani?" He said as he turned to her, still smiling.

"As I will ever be!" said Ani as she looked back at Kurisu. "Sorry about my dad. He gets worried alot."

Kurisu shook his head as he walked to the side of Ani. "Its perfectly fine, my mum was exactly the same when I left. Come to think about, how come your mom wasn't there to see you off?" He enquired. It was at that moment that Ani lost all her energy and stopped in the middle of the road.

Ani's smile seemed to fade at that precise moment. "Oh..." she said."My mom... well... she... She's... not 'here' anymore..." She quietly said as he bowed her head, trying to hide how she was looking and feeling right now.

Kurisu suddenly realised what she meant. Her mum was gone. "Oh...I'm sorry...I didn't...know..." Kurisu felt really bad for Ani and wrapped his arms around her, giving her a quick hug.

Ani's eyes looked up towards Kurisu. She just smiled sadly a bit back at him, although tears were forming in her eyes now. "It's alright..." she said as she hugged back."It was a long time ago..."

Kurisu tightened the hold on her. "Are you...going to be ok? I mean...I can hold you a little longer if you want?" He quietly spoke as he tried his best to calm her down.

Ani sniffled a little before drying her eyes. "I'll be alright..." she said."Don't worry about it."

Kurisu just looked at her for a while, and then he nodded slowly; unwrapping the hold around her. Thought deep down, he didn't want to let go after what had just been said in front of him. Ani took a deep breath, calming down a bit before smiling a bit. "Shall we go?" she asked.

Smiling a little, Kurisu nodded as he held Ani's hand. "Yeah...before we go though...I just want you to know Ani that...I'll protect you...So your mom will be watching us travel together with a smile on her face." He said, as he stared into Ami's eyes. The look on his face showed his determination to help Ami achieve both their dreams.

Ani blushed a bit at that, smiling a bit more. "Okay, Thanks Kurisu" she said, squeezing his hand a bit. Kurisu just smiled as his face blushed a little. He was glad she was feeling better but he was still worried. But soon the gaze turned to the route ahead of them.

"Well then, let's go Ani!" He replied, still holding Ani's hand as he began to run away from Littleroot towards the first route. "Let's make this journey one to remember!" Ani laughed as she ran along with him, beginning their first step into their journey together.

It was at that moment that their journey had begun. What adventures would await the new trainers? Which Pokémon will they catch and which trainers would they meet and battle? Only time would tell. But unaware to them both, the shadows of both their pasts, both unknown and known, was creeping up on them and was going to shape their destines forever.

To be continued…


	2. Chapter 2: First friend, First Night

**Episode 2**

Time had gone by quickly since Kurisu and Ani left to start their journey. It had already turned late; the sky was filled with the crimson colour of the sunset. Kurisu looked out over the cliff towards the forest ahead of them. "Looks like a forest is up ahead...we should probably stop here for the night." Kurisu said as he turned to Ani.

Ani nodded. "Yeah..." she said."Maybe some Pokémon will come out at night." It was just then that a few Pokémon cries were heard amongst the sound of the small gentle wind.

"I'm sure some will...the question is what and whether they will be nice or not." Kurisu said as he walked over to Ani and sat down on the remains of a tree stump. "Either way, I wonder what our first Pokémon encounter will be..."

"Maybe a Poochyena?" said Ani as she sat down near the base of a tree. "…or a Zigzagoon? Maybe even…a Pikachu!" She was getting more and more excited as she spoke.

Kurisu just smiled as he looked over. He admitted he was interested in what Pokémon they'd find first aswell. But then his mind shifted to Ani "So Ani...mind telling me a little bit about yourself?" He said as he blushed a tiny bit.

Ani looked over at Kurisu when he asked the question. She smiled and said, "Sure! What did you want to know first?" Ani then adjusted herself comfortably against the tree.

Kurisu just smiled as he looked over at her "Well...tell me anything about yourself. Like some personal info?" He blushed a little as his voice went quiet. Never had he had the chance to ask someone about themselves so quickly when they had only just met earlier that day.

Ani thought about it for a moment. "Well..." she said. "I guess I like candy... And I once had a habit of biting my fingernails when I was little."

All Kurisu could do was chuckle a little "Maybe that last one was a little too personal. I meant like your age and interests?" Kurisu said as he slowly calmed himself down, and got up from his tree stump and walked towards Ani.

"Oh," said Ani, chuckling a bit as well. "Well I like to go on the computer, draw, sing, dance, and... uh... hmm..." She gave some more thought into it. "Oh! And I've wanted to go on an adventure as a kid!" Her eyes glanced towards the sunset, like she thinking back to the day she dreamt of taking the challenge of an adventure.

"Likewise here!" Kurisu was surprised that she had the same desire for so long as he did. "I was like that too...Though it's thanks to my parents that I finally got the urge to finally start it" Kurisu's eyes then glanced in the same direction as Ani, straight towards the sunset.

"Really?" said Ani also surprised that they had the same ambition. "What are they like?" She turned herself back towards Kurisu, as if what he had said had snapped her back from a trance.

"Well..." Kurisu's mind began to recall his parents, as he closed his eyes. "My Mum works for one of the Pokémon Gym's back in Johto. She helps look after the gym in Goldenrod City, whereas my Dad was a trainer in the past. He has a lot of Pokémon back home" Kurisu opened his eyes and then looked up at the sky "They talked about how fun it was to have Pokémon so...they said to me that I should try."

Ani smiled brightly at that. "My dad wanted to be a Gym leader when he was young," she said. "But he never got that chance... Instead he collected badges in Kanto and nearly got into the Hall of Fame! He said the Indigo League was where he met my mom." She looked up at the sky for a moment. "They stopped being trainers when they got married. They don't talk much about it... I know my dad was happy when I told him I wanted to be a trainer."

Kurisu's eye widened at the mention of how skilled her dad was. "Wow...he nearly got into the Hall of Fame? That's amazing!" Kurisu turned back with quite an explosion of energy. "I bet he was happy...I mean I would be, if someone like you became a trainer when their dad was so skilled." It was at that moment that a bush nearby started to rustle.

Ani was about to say more when she heard the rustle. "Hmm?" she inquired curiously. "What was that?"

Kurisu just slowly moves forwards towards the bush "W-Who's there?" He said rather nervously. He was scared what might be lurking within the bush but obviously it was best to know what was there.

The rustling increased a little bit more and more until suddenly a small black figure popped out the bushes and stood its ground. Kurisu fell back when it jumped out, causing him to fall onto his bottom. The black creature was now in full view. It was in the shape of a small black wolf with grey hair on its back. It stood there, growling at the pair. "It's a Pokémon!" Kurisu said as he got back to his feet. "It has to be!"

Ani 'oooh'ed at that and quickly pulled out her Pokédex. "I wonder what it is," she said.

The Pokédex popped open and turned itself on. The screen lit up and a picture of the Pokémon appeared on the screen. 'Poochyena, the bite Pokémon. POOCHYENA is an omnivore - it will eat anything. A distinguishing feature is how large its fangs are compared to its body. This Pokémon tries to intimidate its foes by making the hair on its tail bristle out." The Pokédex spoke with its electronic female style voice, as it was accustomed for Ani and then turned itself off.

Ani smiled at that, then looked towards the Poochyena when she closed her Pokédex. "It's so cute!" she said. "I want it!" She then pulled out her Pokéball with her Torchic in it. "Go Torchic!" She then threw the ball, which opened to reveal her Torchic.

Kurisu stood up and quickly moved out the way. "Ani! You remember how to catch a Pokémon right?" He was curious as to how to catch a Pokémon in the wild, but excited as he never seen a capture right in front of him before.

"Yep!" said Ani as she turned to Kurisu with a determined look on her face. She then turned back and saw her Torchic was ready to fight. "You have to weaken it first. So Torchic, use scratch!" Torchic gave a focused 'Chic!' noise at that before running towards the Poochyena; jumping into the air as it prepared to scratch with its talons.

The Poochyena gritted its teeth and jumped into the air towards Torchic. It opened its mouth wide showing off its mighty, sharp, white teeth. Kurisu gasped as he watched it jump into the air. "Look out! I think its going to use Bite!" He quickly turned to Ani, hoping in time for her to react.

Ani gave a quick gasp, but then regained her focus back to her Pokémon rather then the opponent. "Quick Torchic, evade it!" Ani called out, hoping her Torchic would be able to dodge in time. Torchic gasped a bit and quickly tried to manoeuvre away from the teeth as it stopped its midair attack.

But the Poochyena was too quick and managed to bite into Torchic's leg. Kurisu watched in horror as the bite hit its mark. "It's fast!" He pointed out to Ani.

Torchic screamed as it was bitten and began pecking at the Poochyena to release it. Ani became worried as she tried to think of a way to weaken the wolf Pokémon. "Use Ember!" she shouted. "Now Torchic!" The Torchic stopped pecking for a moment and took a deep breath as it began spouting out small orbs of fire at Poochyena.

The orbs hit Poochyena right into the face. The grip loosened on the bite and Poochyena fell down onto the ground. "Nice! Keep it up Torchic!" Kurisu jumped with energy as he was getting excited from the battle. Poochyena tried to stand up but was having trouble.

"Finish it with Scratch Torchic!" Ani called out, feeling excited as well. Torchic nodded and began run-limping at Poochyena, leaping into the air again and ready to land a scratch with its good foot.

All Poochyena could do was go wide eyed as the foot connected with it. It flew back and landed just near the tree stump where Kurisu was sitting before. It just lay there, unable to move but it showed signs that it still wanted to fight. "Now is your chance!" Kurisu called out with quite a force, he was acting like a captain of the army.

Ani quickly grabbed an empty Pokéball from her waist at that. "Here we go!" she called out as she threw the ball at the Poochyena.

The Pokéball hit the wounded Poochyena and a bright red light engulfed it. It was sent into the Pokéball and the ball fell to the ground. It began to shake to side to side as the capture process was almost done. After a little bit of struggling, the ball stopped moving and all was quiet. Kurisu stared at the ball for a while then turned to Ani and Torchic "You did it!" He exploded with energy as he rushed over to Ani and gave her a hug.

Ani hugged back, cheering in delight. "YAAAAAYYY! I did it! We did it Torchic! We caught our first Pokémon!" Torchic cheered in delight and ran around in circles around Ani and Kurisu before falling over because of its injured leg.

Kurisu looked over at Torchic, his mouth widened as he gasped at Torchic's injury. "That bite must have done more then what we thought!"

Ani kneeled down beside her Torchic and took a look at the injury. "Torchic can't move properly with an injured leg," she said as she pulled out a first aid kit from her bag. "Good thing I packed a first aid kit." With that, she began patching up the young fire-type.

Kurisu watched in amazement as Ani patched the leg up. "Wow...you really were packed for this sort of thing huh?" He said sounding rather impressed that Ani was so prepared for this situation. "I wonder how your new Pokémon is doing?" Once Ani was done patching up her Torchic, she turned to her Pokéball and picked it up. "Well, let's see, Come on out Poochyena!" she said as she tossed the ball up in the air. It opened to reveal the Poochyena.

Poochyena panted a little for air as it was still recovering from the battle. It then shook its head and looked up at Ani. Then it looked at Torchic and then finally at Kurisu. It gently and slowly backed away due it nerves, its ears flopped down.

"Hey there!" said Ani as she kneeled down beside the Poochyena. "Welcome to the team. You okay?" Ani gave a gentle smile towards Poochyena, hoping to ease

Poochyena just stared into nothing for a while then it slowly nodded its head and slowly walked towards Ani. "I think it's trying to get used to you Ani." Kurisu said as he kneeled down next to her.

Ani nodded and slowly reached out toward the Poochyena, trying to show that she meant no harm.

Poochyena just sniffed Ani's hand gently, and then it gave a little smile and gave it a playful lick. "Pooch!" It gave a playful cry as it began to run around Ani, then stared at Kurisu with the same look it gave Ani earlier.

Ani giggled a bit, and then turned to Kurisu. "I think it likes you too." she said with a smile.

Kurisu slowly extended his hand forward to the Poochyena, hoping the response would be just the same. The timid Pokémon slowly did the same as before, sniffing Kurisu's hand and then licking it slowly. After a little bit of time, The Poochyena began to jump and down and run around the pair of trainer's legs, acting like a playful puppy.

Ani giggled at how excited the Poochyena was, and then turned to her Torchic, who was slowly approaching the Pokémon, slightly limping but able to walk still.

The Poochyena turned to the Torchic and then slowly walked towards it. Its eyes filled with a bit of worry because of the condition the Torchic was in. "Don't worry little guy. Torchic is going to be fine." Kurisu said with a comforting tone to his voice.

Ani nodded. "Yeah," she said as she gently picked up her Torchic and gave it a little pet it on the head. "Nothing that the Pokémon Centre can't fix." Torchic smiled and 'Torchic!'ed in agreement.

Poochyena just gave a little smile, it was still worried but he could see how happy they were that it wasn't serious. Kurisu juts gave a little stretch as the sun just about disappeared under the horizon. "Well...I guess it's about time we set up the tent." He turned to Ani "Ever slept out before?"

Ani shook her head. "Nope," she said. "I've always wanted to go camping though!" She then gently set down her Torchic and rummaged through her bag for a tent.

Kurisu rummaged around in his bag for his tent aswell and eventually he found it. Setting it up was quite easy as his dad had showed him how to set one up before he left. After a good 10 minutes, he had set up his small tent "There...finished!" Kurisu wiped the tiny sweat from his forehead. "How's yours coming along Ani?" He turned towards his friend to see how she was doing.

Ani started to panic a little as she rummaged through her bag. "I can't find a tent…" said Ani as she continued to search. She then pulled out a sleeping bag. "But I found this."

"At least you have a sleeping bag Ani." He said as he looked at his tent and began to think. Then he turned back to Ani and gave a smile "Well...you can stay in my tent tonight if you want to?" His face blushed a little as he gently rubbed his foot on the ground.

Ani looked towards the tent, then at Kurisu, blushing a bit as well. "I dunno," she said. "Wouldn't it be a bit... cramped in there?"

Kurisu bowed his head abit but then shook his head as he looked up at her. "Maybe...but wouldn't it be better then sleeping out in the cold?" He was concerned for Ani's health and safety and did want to do what he could.

Ani thought about it for a moment, then soon turned to Kurisu and smiled. "Sure," she said. "At least until we get to town. We may need to stock up on supplies we need..." A thought then came to her. "Did you bring any money with you?"

Kurisu smirked a little. "I have abit of money. I have about 5000 Pokédollars so that should last us for a while." He pulled out his wallet from his bag, revealing the notes within the top part of his wallet "What about you?"

Ani rummaged through her own wallet and pulled out a decent sum of money out. "About 2500," she said.

Kurisu smiled "So between us we have 7500 Pokédollars, which sounds like we should be fine for a while." Kurisu then looked out towards the scenery. "Well...let's get ourselves ready for our first night together." Kurisu said, covering his mouth as he yawned a little and took off his shoes. His barefeet gently resting against the short grass beneath him.

Ani nodded and took off her own shoes, letting her barefeet rest aswell and yawning as well before searching through her bag for some pyjamas.

"Did you bring any Pyjama's with you?" Kurisu said as he pulled out his pyjamas from his bag. He then walked behind a nearby rock and began to get changed into them, blushing a little as he noticed Ani watching him disappear behind the rock.

Ani giggled as she watched him go behind the rock, and then continued rummaging. "I should have" she said, looking through her clothes for PJs.

As he continued to change, Kurisu could hear Ani rummage through her bag. "If you can't find any then...you might have to sleep in your clothes..." He blushed a bright red, feeling quite happy that she couldn't see his face "Not that...there's a problem with that...since you...look quite nice" Kurisu's voice was quiet at that moment.

Ani laughed a bit, blushing a little as well. "Thanks. But it wouldn't be comfortable if I did that," she said as she continued looking. "Let' see... ah! Right here!" She then pulled out a pair of pink PJs with little white stars all over them.

Kurisu smiled as he heard the joy coming from Ani. "Glad you found them..." He said quietly as he just finished putting the bottom half of his PJ's. "Am I...alright to come out or...are you still changing?" his face went quite red as he was worried he would come out at a bad timing. He then realised he forgot his PJ top. He took a tiny peek round the rock to see where his bag was. He quickly ran back to his bag and managed to pull out his red PJ top. It was then he looked up and could see Ani in her PJ's whilst all he was standing there with his bare chest in view.

Ani had changed into her PJs when Kurisu had asked the question, but before she could answer he ran back to his bag. She looked over at him and blushed a deep red when she saw his bare chest. "Uhhh... um..." she said, not sure what to say.

Kurisu blushed a bright red as he looked up at Ani. He quickly stood up and looked at Ani in her PJ's. "Uhh..." He couldn't really say anything in response. It was then he looked down at his chest and quickly bowed his head, he wanted to just hide behind the rock and put it on. "I-I'll...j-just...put this...back on..." He was so nervous speaking to Ani as he looked at her. But as he turned away to head towards the rock again, he felt his hand held tightly by something...

"Wait," said Ani as she held his hand. "Um..." She blushed a bit, hen looked away slightly. "I think... you look... pretty good..."

Kurisu's face blushed gently as he heard Ani's words. Slowly, he turned towards Ani whom he could see was hiding her face. "I...I do...?" Kurisu said quietly as he gently held onto Ani's hand.

Ani nodded a bit, slowly. She then gulped a bit and turned towards the tent. "Um... it's kinda cold out, huh?" she asked, laughing nervously.

Kurisu's attention soon shifted to the tent as she spoke "Y-Yeah...Then again...I have no shirt on and...you're PJ's...have a little tummy exposed there..." He blushed gently as he gave a little smile "Are you...going to keep your Pokémon out...?" He was nervous to speak as he turned his head to look at Ani.

"W-Well..." said Ani as she looked towards her Torchic and Poochyena."Why not..? They can... get to know each other... this way..."

"S-Sure...let me get Mudkip out aswell..." He looked down at his hand, blushing a little "That is...if well...you want to let go" Kurisu gave a gentle smile as he slowly let his grip on her hand go gently. Ani let go as well, but still felt the lingering warmth of his hand for a moment before smiling a little.

Kurisu was still blushing a little as he then picked up Mudkip's Pokéball. "Come and join us Mudkip." And with that he pressed the button on the Pokéball and Mudkip came out and began to jump up and down. Torchic greeted Mudkip, and then led it over to Poochyena.

Mudkip just tilted it head at Poochyena and then put its paw out, as if it was offering a paw shake. Kurisu just smirked "Aww...look at that, Mudkip has some manners. Mudkip, this is our new friend, Poochyena."

Poochyena looked over at Mudkip, a bit curious at first but then it went over to the water-type and sniffed it a bit. Poochyena soon smiled and held up his own paw. "Pooch!" it exclaimed.

Mudkip happily smiled as his paw touched the new Pokémon's paw aswell. Kurisu just gave a smile and then looked at Ani "Anyway...I best put my shirt back on...so we can get some sleep." Kurisu then bowed his face and looked up at her, blushing a little "Unless...you prefer...this off...?" His face blushed a lot deeper at that moment.

"Well..." Before Ani could reply, a cold wind passed through them. "M-M-M-Maybe y-you should... p-put it on..." she said, shivering. "I-I-It's pretty c-c-c-c-cold out here..." She then went over to the tent and quickly climbed in.

The cold breeze brushed over his chest and quickly climbed in "G-g-g-g-good idea! Wait for me!" He quickly replied as he turned to the Pokémon "You three, come on in!" He waved his hands as he wanted the three Pokémon to be warm too. Mudkip just looked over then nodded his head and ran towards the tent.

Mudkip, Torchic and Poochyena quickly climbed into the tent and dove under what ever they could dive under to get warm. Ani couldn't help but giggled at how cute that was.

Kurisu zipped up the tent and turned to see his Mudkip had snuggled under his t-shirt "Well...guess I know what my t-shirt is used as tonight." He chuckled a little as he smiled at the sight of the 3 Pokémon trying to get warm. "Guess...I have to sleep with it off..." He blushed a little as he turned to Ani.

Ani nodded, blushing a bit as well. "Yeah," she said before snuggling into her sleeping bag. "Well, g'night Kurisu. G'night Poochy and Torchic." With that, she closed her eyes and slowly drifted off to sleep.

Kurisu snuggles into his sleeping bag and smiled at Ani and the Pokémon. "Yeah...G'night Ani, Goodnight Mudkip..." And with that his voice went quieter as he was about to drift off to sleep. But he was having a little trouble drifting to sleep as he looked at Ani. His heart beated quite a bit as he turned his ahead to look away "She...said...I looked nice..." he quietly murmured to himself. Wondering what Ani was thinking about him.

Ani woke up for a second to glance over a bit at Kurisu. 'He does look nice...' she thought. 'And he IS nice too... Yeah, today was DEFINATELY a good day.' She then closed her eyes again and soon fell asleep.

Kurisu then looked over at Ani and smiled gently as he heard her drift off to sleep. "I wonder...what tomorrow will hold..." He thought as he slowly drifted off to sleep himself.

The sound of the evening echoed through the air and the cold wind blew, ending the first day of the adventure of the two friends. But little did they know that the next day would change both their lives with a fateful encounter…..


	3. Chapter 3: Morning Madness!

**Episode 3**

Morning soon came, bringing up the first signs of a new day. Ani moaned a bit as she slowly opened her eyes and yawned. "Morning..." she muttered as she sat upright, looking around inside the tent she and Kurisu slept in last night. "Oh cool... I wasn't dreaming..." she said, still a bit sleepy.

Kurisu's Mudkip woke up at the noise of Ani's voice. It rubbed its eyes with its paw and looked up at Ani with a playful smile.

Ani looked down at the Mudkip, smiling a bit. "Good morning Mudkip," she greeted. Soon her Torchic and Poochyena were awake, yawning and shaking their heads a bit. "Morning Poochy... Torchic." Ani said to her Pokémon when she noticed they were awake.

Kurisu stirred a little as he heard all the speaking. He slowly opened his eyes and looked around the tent, rubbing his eyes slightly. "Oh...What's with all the…." His eyes opened wide when he saw Ani and the Pokémon wide awake. "Oh! Morning everyone…" He said, rather sleepy still from the slight waking up.

"Morning Kurisu," said Ani, almost fully awake now as she got out from underneath her sleeping bag. "Sleep well?"

Kurisu sat up, as he gave a gentle stretch. "Yeah, I slept alright actually. What about you?" he said as he turned his blue eyes over at her, giving a gentle chuckle. "I'm guessing it was very different then a bed back home."

"I don't mind!" said Ani as she began rolling up her sleeping bag. "It's kind of like camping... only different."

Kurisu just smiled as he looked over at her. He admitted it was about the same for him aswell. His Mudkip began to run around the tent, causing quite a ruckus since there was hardly any room in the tent at all. "S-Settle down you!" He said as he leant over to the entrance to the tent. And with that, he opened the zip to let Mudkip run out, whom dashed out the tent as fast as a bullet. "Man...What a handful" He gave a chuckle as he slowly got out of his sleeping bag, still without his top on.

Poochyena and Torchic leapt out of the tent when they saw it zipped open, getting excited to start the new day. Ani laughed a bit at that as well. "Indeed," she said before glancing over at Kurisu again. She blushed a bit when she noticed that he still didn't have a shirt on. "Um... m-maybe we should... get dressed now..?"

Kurisu blinked a little as he wondered what she meant. It was then his blue eyes glanced down and saw his shirt was still near the bag and as Mudkip had used it as a blanket last night. "Uh...S-Sure..." he quickly grabbed his stuff and got up to get out the tent. "I'll…get changed by that rock again..." he said, with a large blush on his face. With that, he got out and went to change into his normal clothes behind the nearby large rock.

Ani nodded. "And I'll... be changing in here..." she said, quickly zipping the tent back up. "No peeking okay?" She called out to Kurisu, whom was already starting to get changed, and with that, she started changing clothes.

Meanwhile, Torchic glanced at the tent, then back to the rock, wondering what they were doing. It then looked over at the other Pokémon for a moment.

Mudkip ran around the remains of the campfire, jumping up and down from excitement and full of energy. It gently nibbled on Poochena's ear. Meanwhile Chris had just put his trousers on, it was then he looked at his t-shirt, remembering what happened last night about how his pyjama top misplacement, made Ani see his bare chest. He blushed deeply as he did think abit about what Ani said that night about how he looked.

Poochyena pulled away a bit, somewhat irritated from having its ear being nibbled, growling to make its point. Torchic 'chic!'ed to the two and began babbling a bit as it ran around, trying to get it to pay attention to what was possibly going on between their trainers.

Back in the tent, Ani had just put on her top and was now changing into her pants. All the while, she thought about last night. 'I wonder...' she thought. '... Does he really think I look good..?' She blushed a bit at that, and then shook her head a bit. 'Maybe... I dunno. We just met yesterday, though... Hmm...' She then sighed heavily.

Kurisu put his top on and gently smiled as he thought more of the words that Ani said about him the night before, but his thoughts were interrupted as he heard Torchic making noises. He ran round the corner to see the situation "Whoa! What's going on?" He said as he rushed over to stop the babbling and mayhem that might occur.

Torchic stopped for a moment, then began jumping up and down and ran around Kurisu's legs, sounding worried about something. Ani soon heard what was going on outside, causing her to quickly finish getting dressed before unzipping the tent and rushing outside. "What's going on out here?" she asked. "What's wrong with Torchic?"

"I'm not sure..." he said, not sure what to make of what was going on. His eyes then turned to Mudkip and Poochyena situation. He rushed over, grabbing Mudkip in his arms. "What exactly happened here? Did you do something Mudkip?" He said, as his eyes looked down at Mudkip. His eyes then looked up at Poochyena ear and saw it kinda wet. "Mudkip...what did you do?"

Poochyena barked a few times to disapprove of Mudkip nibbling on its ear while Torchic was still babbling, worried about the trainer's behaviour to each other. Ani sweatdropped at that, chuckling nervously. "Maybe they're getting too excited..." she said, pulling out two of her Pokéballs. "Think we should recall them until they calm down?"

Kurisu nodded his head as he pulled out his Mudkip's Pokéball. "Return Mudkip" He called out and with that Mudkip disappeared into the ball. He gave a sigh as he knew that would quell this argument right now.

Ani returned her own Pokémon to their Pokéballs, sighing in relief. "Phew..." she said. "Hopefully they'll calm down."

"Yeah...Hopefully" He said as he started to pack up the tent back into the bag. "Anyway...let's get going. If we are lucky we can make it to the next town before the night falls again." He said as he then looked out towards the small road of them. His thought turned back to when Ani caught her first Pokémon. Kurisu wondered if he was going to catch his first one soon...

Ani helped put the tent away, and then she saw his expression. "What's up?" she asked. "You seem a bit... distant."

Kurisu snapped back when he heard Ani speak to him. "W-Well...uh...it's just..." He was worried about what Ani would think of his thoughts. But he then gulped nervously and gave a large sigh. "It's just...I'm worried it might be a while before I catch my first Pokémon..."

Ani smiled at that. "Aww cheer up!" she said as she pat him on the back. "I'm sure you find a Pokémon to catch soon. There are a lot out here, so we're bound to find more to battle and catch! Right?" She laughed a little at the end of her sentence.

Kurisu just smiled and nodded slowly. Ani's voice was so sincere and right to the point. They HAD only just begun their journey so obviously it was bound to be a rocky start for them. "You're right...Thanks Ani" He said, sounding abit more happy then what he was just a while ago.

"No problem," said Ani before she headed back on the trail. "Now let's go! There are places to go and Pokémon to find!"

Kurisu nodded his head and got up on his feet. "Right...Let's go!" And with that sudden burst of energy, he began to run along the path. "C'mon Ani! Race ya!" He shouted as ran towards the end of the route.

"Hey!" Ani playfully called out as she ran after him. "No fair! You've got a head start over me!"

Kurisu had a smile on his face as he turned around to see Ani. He saw how far ahead he was and then decided to stop. He gave a playful wink to her as he stood with his arms crossed in the middle of the pathway. "Alright I'll wait!" He shouted back to her as he gentle smirked to her.

Ani laughed a bit at that as she began to catch up to him.

Kurisu decided he didn't want to wait much more and ran to the top of the hill. His eyes gazed in awe as he looked out at the view before him. There it was...Oldale town! "Ani!" he turned around and yelled out at the top of his lungs to his friend down below. "Come look at this!"

"What is it?" Ani called back as she began to run up the hill. "Have we made it to Oldale already?" She smiled in excitement as she said this.

"I think so!" He said as he pointed out towards the town. "It seems like it!"

Once Ani got up the hill, she smiled brightly in awe. "Wow!" she exclaimed. "This is amazing!"

"I know..." His eyes were transfixed on the buildings before him. It looked like it was exactly like Littleroot town, only it was a tiny bit bigger with more buildings and people in it. Kurisu's gaze turned back to Ani as he smiled at her. "We made it..."

Ani smiled back at Kurisu. "Yeah... we did," she said. She admired the scenery for a while, and then in her excitement she ran off ahead of him. "What are we waiting for? Let's check this place out!"

Kurisu got surprised when he watched her bolt ahead. "Wait for me!" He yelled as he ran after her towards the entrance of Oldale Town. The sun had just finished rising above the horizon, and the breeze was calm but the winds would soon be filled with an aura of a heated battle as a lone red haired figure watched them from a distance...


End file.
